The disclosed technology relates generally to error correction in digital communications systems, and more particular, to error correction of particular error patterns that are not correctable by conventional means.
Currently, the most common standards for Ethernet communications allow for connections of up to 1 gigabit/second (Gb/s). However, with the increasing demand for high-speed Ethernet communications, the 10GBase-T standard for 10 Gb/s transmission was developed, and has the potential in the near future to become widely used in the communications industry. The 10GBase-T standard defines specifications for communications over conventional unshielded or shielded twisted pair cables, and for distances of at up 100 meters.
As communications speeds increase, the importance of high quality detection and decoding in receivers increases drastically. For reliable communication, it is necessary for receivers to be able to accurately detect and correct errors in data communicated over these Ethernet systems. The 10 GBase-T standard specifies a particular low-density parity check (LDPC) code with a block size of 2048 bits and 325 parity bits. However, current decoding techniques for this LDPC code, such as min-sum decoding, might not be able to correct errors when certain patterns of errors occur. For example, due to limitations of the LDPC code, certain error patterns may include bit errors that effectively cancel each other out in syndrome computation, which may render a standard decoding technique unable to detect the presence of errors at all. When these types of error patterns occur, current decoding techniques may incorrectly decode the transmitted information, possibly increasing the number of errors present.